Car-seal.



W. HAY.

CAB SEAL.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 30. 1911.

1256,896. I Patented Feb.19,1918.

wlmzssf- V INVENTOR: 6 p 4 ram/m Hay.

I BY I m 56% A TTORNE Y WILLIAM HAY, OF ARLINGTON, WASHINGTON, ASSIGNOR F ONE-HALE T0 NEIL BROWN, 0F ARLINGTON, WASHINGTON CAR-SEAL.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, \VILLIAM HAY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Arlington, in the county of Snohomish and State of Washington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Seals, of which the following is a specification. 4

This invention relates to car seals of the class conventionally known as self-locking.

The object of my invention is to provide a car-seal of this character which will be an improvement over those hitherto in use.

l/Vith this end in view, the invention consists in the novel construction, adaptation and combination of parts, as will be herein after described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in longitudinal section through 1-1 of Fig.

3 of a car-seal embodying the present invention and showing the shackle member in locked engagement. Fig. 2 is a fragmentary longitudinal section of the same showing the shackle being introduced into the keeper or casing member of the device. Fig. 3 is a plan view of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the blank from which the casing and shackle are formed. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the shackle-engaging device shown detached.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 6 represents a shackle member in the form of a narrow strip which-extends from the lower element 7 of a shell or keeper member 8, said shackle member being provided near its outer end with a rectangular slot 9.

The two aforesaid members are made of a single piece of sheet metal substantially of the form represented in Fig. 4, the wing elements 10, 10 thereof being folded upwardly and inwardly to overlie each other, and are themselves overlaid at one end by a flap 11 and are reliably secured together as by soldering, brazing or in any other suitable manner.

Provided within said keeper is a locking device engageable with the free end of the shackle. Said device comprises a spring formed of a resilient plate bent at 12 to afford two arms 13 and 14, the former being rigidly secured to the keeper element i as by a. rivet 15 and an offset lip 16 provided on the arm 13 extending through a hole in said ele ment to engage against the bottom of the Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Feb. 19, 1918.

Application filed June so; 1917. Serial No. 177,966.

latter. The other arm 14 is formed at each side with a shoulder 17 and thence extends as a tongue 18 of a width somewhat less than the width of the shackle slot 9 and has its extremity turned, as by a loop 18 about an element 19 of a link 19 to hingedly connect the same to the tongue 18. The length of this link is such that it will normally occupy the inclined positions in which it is represented in Figs. 1 and 2.

The tongue 18 is furthermore formed or provided at a short distance from its extremity, with a downwardly directed protrusion 20 which serves as a stop against the slot edge 9 when the shackle is in the locked position in which it is shown in Fig. 1.

To employ the seal, the shackle is looped and its free end introduced into the entrance orifice 21 of the keeper and between the top thereof and the spring arm 14 (see Fig. :2) and then pushed rearwardly until the shackle orifice is in position to permit the tongue 18 of the referred-to arm to be thrust through the slot by the'resiliency of the spring. The shackle end is then retracted by the operator while being deflected downwardly by the slot edge 9 encountering the curved surface of the tongue loop 18, and in its continued forward movement said slot edge engages and swerves the link 19 upwardly to permit the passage of the portion 6 of the shackle, whereupon the link drops into its normal position and serves to guide the end of the shackle upwardly when the latter is moved for a short distance and cause the shackle portion 6 to be brought between the upper end of the link and the protrusion 20 of the spring tongue 14, as clearly shown in Fig. 1.

With the parts in the positions just described, it is seen that the shackle end is prevented from being withdrawn from the keeper by reason of the spring tongue 18 extending through the shackle slot and the spring shoulders 17 bcarin g upwardly against the shackle to retain the shackle portion 6 in its lodged position between said link and the stop or protrusion 20. It is impossible to disengage the shackle because of the link, without destroying the keeper or at least mutilating it in a manner to indicate it has been tampered with.

What I claim, is

A car seal comprising a keeper having a closed end, a shackle member integral therewith and extending from the open end of. outer end of said tongue'and arranged-to en- 10 the keeper, said shackle being provided with gage against the' arm which is sec'ured'to the a slot adjacent to its outer end, a spring de- "keeper. 4 vice within the keeper and comprising a Signed at Arlington, Washington, this 5 plate bent to provide tWo arms, one of said 22nd day of June, 1917. i

' arms being rigidly secured to the keeper, the 1 WILLIAM HAY.

other arm being formed with a tongue ex- Witnesses: tending from two shoulders provided on the C. 0. GRANT, arm, and a 1ink hingedly connected to'the A. G. MCKILLICAN.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the commissioner of I'atents,

- :Washington, D. c. 

